Dave lives in Victoria. He is involved with a group called AIDS Vancouver Island, who work to prevent infection, provide support, and reduce stigma. He tries to get by on welfare. He feels fortunate to have access to safe, clean housing but he struggles, however, with affording proper nutrition. He lines up for many hours each month for food at soup kitchens and food banks. He would like to see more places provide high-quality, nutritious food.

We support raising welfare rates and indexing them to inflation. Welfare rates are completely inadequate and have not been increased since 2007, while the cost of living has risen substantially in that time. People living in poverty are more likely to have health issues, and the health care costs of poverty are $1.2 billion per year.

“I find myself eating a lot of donuts cause we can’t afford proper food. A lot of us are sick and we need healthy food. They should pay a bit more.”

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